


Serious

by Kellie_116



Series: 31 Days of Fic 2018 [2]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-02
Updated: 2018-12-02
Packaged: 2019-09-05 19:28:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,059
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16816966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kellie_116/pseuds/Kellie_116
Summary: Every day of December, I'll be posting a song-inspired one-shot of a different Penelope Garcia pairing! Check out myplaylistfor all the songs!





	Serious

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by "Let 'Em Talk" by Kesha feat. Eagles of Death Metal

"You're – you're dating _who_?" JJ's eyes widened and gave a breathy laugh of surprise and confusion as she looked across her desk at a particularly squirmy Penelope Garcia.

"Supervisory Special Agent Jordan Todd," Garcia repeated. She was sitting on the very edge of her chair, and her legs seemed to be jiggling up and down completely of their own accord.

"I don't even know what to say," JJ admitted through an awkward laugh. "I didn't even know she liked women. I didn't know _you_ liked women." And yeah, although she wasn't going to admit it, it was a little weird to think that while she was out on maternity leave, loving every second she got to spend with Henry but still counting down the days until she could be back with her team, one of her closest friends had been getting it on with her replacement.

"Neither did I," Penelope confessed, "But I like Jordan. She makes me happy. Okay. Have a good day." With that, she stood quickly and turned on her heel, headed for the door.

"Wait!" JJ called after her. "I thought you wanted to, I don't know, talk about this." She felt a little silly when she realized she wasn't actually sure what she had thought Garcia wanted; she just knew she hadn't expected her to leave so quickly after such a declaration.

Garcia smoothed down the hem of her purple cardigan. "Do you feel like we need to talk about it?" She asked, her voice almost a challenge, as if she'd been waiting for JJ to raise questions about her new relationship and was ready for a fight.

JJ felt her defenses rising. She'd never felt so on edge around Penelope, and she wanted very much to ease the tension between them. She stood up slowly and walked to where Penelope stood, her brown eyes tracking the liaison closely from behind her pink and red two-tone frames.

"Are you happy, Penelope?" JJ asked, looking expectantly into the analyst's eyes.

"Yes," Garcia didn't hesitate for a moment, and JJ smiled.

"Then I guess there's nothing to talk about," JJ decided. "If you're happy, I'm happy for you. You certainly don't need my approval." She paused, then added, "And you don't need Derek's, either."

"Jennifer Jareau, I love you," Penelope gushed. Her shoulders visibly relaxed before she wrapped JJ in a hug. "He was all pissy when he found out, like I'd been leading him on or something by not telling him I was into girls – which I absolutely could not have been, since I didn't even know."

"Oh, screw him," JJ said with a dramatic eye roll, and they both giggled at her choice of words. "Derek's just being a big baby because you're actually paying attention to someone other than him."

"Thanks, JJ," Penelope reached for the door, her heart feeling about a thousand times lighter after admitting her new relationship and, ironically, she supposed, being reassured that she didn't need anyone's approval or reassurance.

"See you, Garcia."

* * *

"So, JJ was back at work today?" Jordan asked later that night as she twirled spaghetti onto her fork.

"Yup," Garcia answered cheerfully, tearing off a piece of garlic bread and dipping it in her tomato sauce.

"Well?" Jordan practically hissed, her eyes wide and her shoulders nearly hunched as she leaned across the table towards her girlfriend. "How'd it, you know, go?"

Penelope swallowed. "How did what go?" She was deliberately playing dumb, pretending she didn't know that Jordan was talking about the fact that she'd promised to tell JJ about the pair's new relationship as soon as she came back to work. She knew it was silly, bordering on petty even, but after her conversation with JJ early today, she wanted to make Jordan admit that she was craving external validation of their relationship.

"Oh, come on, Penelope," Jordan deadpanned. "Did you tell JJ we're together? What did she say?"

"Yes, I told her," Penelope said dispassionately.

"Garcia!" Jordan snapped. "What. Did. She. Say?"

Penelope sighed quite dramatically. "Why does it _matter_ , my love?" She asked, and Jordan smiled in spite of herself at the endearment. That was one of the things that had drawn her towards Penelope initially; her sweet nicknames had a way of putting everyone at ease whether they wanted to be or not. _That and her smoking hot bod_ , Jordan thought with a smirk.

"Jordan Todd, get your mind out of the gutter right this instant and answer my question!" Penelope exclaimed when she realized her girlfriend's gaze was completely lost in her bust.

"Sorry, sorry," Jordan muttered, blushing and shaking her head. "What was the question again?" She asked sheepishly, sipping on her water a little bit to avoid eye contact.

"I was asking why it matters what JJ had to say," Penelope reminded her, tilting her fork back and forth gently for emphasis.

"Well, she's your friend, Penelope," Jordan said, blinking slowly as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I mean, I remember how upset you were when Morgan – "

"Screw Morgan," Penelope interrupted. Jordan jolted in surprise, and she elaborated. "I mean, to hell with what Morgan thinks. I'm with you because I care about you and because you make me happy, and if Derek has a problem with that then maybe I should have a problem with him."

Jordan stared, blinking slowly, across the table at her girlfriend. "Wow," she finally said, a small smile sneaking across her face. "You're really serious about this thing, huh?"

Penelope balked. "Is this a trick question?" She didn't want to be too forward, presuming too much about where this new relationship between them was headed, but she didn't want to give the impression that she wasn't serious about Jordan, because she was. _God_ , she was.

Jordan's smile faltered a little. "No, Penelope, it isn't a trick," she said softly. She swallowed, licked her lips, then said, "I'm serious about us, and it sounds to me like you are too, but if you're not, I'd like to know now before we take this any further."

By the time Jordan finished her sentence, Penelope was up and around the table, pulling her girlfriend out of her seat and into a breathtaking kiss. "I'm serious," she whispered. "No matter what anyone says, I'm here."

Jordan smiled, and puckered up.


End file.
